With the 5s Apple bucks the industry trend of increasing camera resolution, holding to 8 megapixels while much of the competition drifts towards 13 megapixels and beyond. Instead of squeezing in more megapixels, Apple chose to use bigger pixels to catch more light when illumination is scarce. There's also a lower f/2.2 aperture. The result: brighter and sharper images, especially in low light. Especially indoor scenes are more evenly lit, back lights are better compensated for, and flesh tones — all colors — are more natural and realistic. Video-wise, the 5s' image stabilization results in noticeably less jitter than in videos shot with the 5, meaning less headaches while watching your home movies.
However, the HTC One has a 4 MP (1520x2688) camera with an f/2.0 aperture but that allows them to go to a pixel size of 2 micrometers on the same 1/3.2-inch sensor. That means that its UltraPixels are larger and should allow for better light sensitivity, particularly in low light situations. The HTC One's wider, f/2.0 aperture also helps with getting light to the sensor, as does its optical image stabilization (OIS).
In a comparative shootout, in most cases, the color depth and saturation of the iPhone 5 seems to be better. The only time the HTC One beats the iPhone 5 is in bright light or in artificial lighting. The HTC One does a better job of balancing the light correctly. In indoor shots, lighting seems to cause a bit of a yellowish or blueish hue in photos taken with the iPhone 5 while the HTC One again does a better job of handling white balance on its own. In most general everyday photos though, the color depth of the iPhone 5 wins out over the HTC One.
Both cameras did well at capturing motion during the day. Night was a different story, and both cameras suffered.
Winner: HTC One
